Pride Home
OUTSaskatoon opened Pride Home in January 2017 in order to provide a place for 2SLGBTQ youth to live open and free lives. Pride Home is a place where gender and sexually diverse youth are celebrated and supported and where they have the support and services that they need to thrive.
Why is Pride Home Needed?
Two Spirit, transgender, and queer youth are at a greater risk of homelessness compared to their cisgender, heterosexual peers. A recent street-based needs assessment in Toronto identified that 24% of youth respondents identified as 2SLGBTQ, and local surveys showed that 30% of youth in OUTSaskatoon's youth program had been homeless or without secure housing at some point in their lives.
OUTSaskatoon started the year long project titled: A Place to Belong: Building Capacity for 2SLGBTQ Housing. This project took inspiration from the success of Pride Home in bettering the lives the youth who lived there. Using Pride Home as the model and needs assessments from local housing organizations and other 2SLGBTQ organizations across Canada, project staff created a 2SLGBTQ housing blueprint.
What is in the blueprint?
The blueprint serves as a how to for creating 2SLGBTQ specific youth housing initiatives. It has information about where to look for funding, how to write proposals, intake forms for youth, day-to-day activities and all of the forms associated with those activities and many more materials that are used within Pride Home. The blueprint is meant to be accessible and ease the burden of creating 2SLGBTQ youth housing.
The link below goes to the blueprint, along with individual appendices for folks to use for their own group homes. There is a file with instructions on how to use this link. Each file is read only and can be downloaded and edited for personal use by any organization.
About the Program
The Home
Pride Home is a six-bedroom home with shared communal spaces. Each bedroom has a private bathroom, mini-fridge, and workspace, and shared spaces include the kitchen, living room space, and an art and recreation space.
It is supported independent living. Youth will have a lease agreement and working relationship with a professional property management company.
Basic Expectations
- Respect for self and others.
- Desire to improve one’s life.
- Participation in the operation and programming of the home.
- No alcohol or drug use in the home.
Residents will sign a Program Agreement, which agrees to no pets, no drugs or alcohol, and limits on guests (currently NO guests due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
Eligibility
In order to live in Pride Home, you need to:
- Be between the ages of 16-21
- Identify as 2SLGBTQ+
- Want to benefit from living in a supported, youth-centered environment
- Want to live at Pride Home and choose to move in voluntarily
Expenses
Rent is Approximately $500 + 1/6 of the utilities. A security deposit is also required.
Cost of food, personal supplies, and other misc. expenses.
Youth residing in Pride Home will cover their rent in the following ways:
- The 16/17 year old program through the Ministry of Social Services (must be going to school to be eligible for the program)
- Social Assistance Program (S.A.P.) (18+)
- Saskatchewan Assistance Insurance for Disability (SAID program)
- Through their own employment
Apply to Pride Home
We meet with people where they are at and partner with them as they move forward in various areas of their life.
With this in mind, we encourage people to complete this referral on their own or alongside support if required. We feel that hearing people's experience and required support first hand is helpful in understanding how to best approach the screening, intake, and engagement process.
Thank you for your support in making this possible.
If you or someone you know is looking for a safe place to live, please contact:
Our Pride Home Manager at pridehome@outsaskatoon.ca.